Well, hello!! I realize an unforgivable amount of time has passed since I last blogged and that this failure on my part is a serious inconvenience to the five of you who still loyally check for an update every day. However, I have a totally legitimate reason for my disappearance, as I was busy studying my brains out for my master of social work license. Last Friday, after way too many months of anxiety leading to way to many ulcers (literally), I officially passed the four-hour exam and now have some exciting letters to tack on to the end of my name: LMSW.

What? Did you say LMSW?

Yes, I said LMSW!!!!!!

Ahhhhhhhhhh!!!!!!!!!! Now, for the first time in three years, I do not have a to-do list that involves homework or studying of any sort.

This weekend, I relaxed 😀

I also reminisced on the vanished summer of 2010 which, though it involved 92% studying, also involved 8% high-quality fun.

Back before my bike got stolen (Yeah, my bike got stolen. Here in my perfect, beautiful Brooklyn neighborhood in the wee hours of a rainy summer morning, some really nice, friendly, community-oriented person took a crazy steel-cutting tool and sliced through the chain like butter.), Erik and I set out to explore Governor’s Island.

I have lived in New York for 10 years and Brooklyn for over five, and I love how there are still new places for me to discover!

We rode through Brooklyn out to the Water Taxi stop for our free lift across the harbor and arranged ourselves in the bike line:

The view was gorgeous from the ferry …

  

… but the views from the island were even more stunning!

Eaters by nature, we started scoping out the lunch options pretty soon upon arriving, weaving in and out of little side streets and through historical brick tunnels to inspect cafes, vending machines, and food carts.

We decided on a cute little food stand featuring local (as in grown on a little farm on the actual island!) and organic produce:

By the time we got to the stand, unfortunately, most of the food was gone! I guess that’s what happens when you wait until 3pm to eat lunch on an uninhabited island that shuts down at 7pm nightly.

I ordered a cup of homemade fresh pineapple ginger drink (yummmmmmmmmmm!) …

… and the last scraps of food on the grill, involving toasty chicken crumbs over a mountain of sauteed cabbage:

We enjoyed our feast with a view of Lady Liberty in the background:

The food was delicious, and it was enhanced by the scenery and the company:

When we finished eating and digesting, we loaded ourselves and our bikes back onto the ferry.

We weren’t ready to call it a day yet, so we took advantage of the water taxi’s close proximity to Red Hook to hit up the best grocery store in the world:

Before picking up an exciting array of treats not regularly available in the little bodegas and food stands of our Brooklyn neighborhood, we took a scenic stroll through the Fairway grounds. Red Hook seems to have recently learned to play up its naturally beautiful location with brilliant landscaping!

After our stroll, we purchased Fairway goodies, loaded up our backpacks, and huffed and puffed and pedaled our way home. Sigh, I miss my bike! And summer! Needless to say, this was a beautiful, relaxing, energizing day in a sea of stress.

I will be back soon with more. Thanks for not forgetting about me!